Surviving on a student budget

Forget baked beans and coca-cola chicken (yes, it exists!) as we show you how to make the most of your student budget.

Being a student and living away from home can throw up all kinds of challenges and one of the biggest is living on a student budget. The last thing you want to do is drop your studies because you've run out of cash, so being on top of your financial situation is essential.

Masters student Ed Teversham, 28, is director of student website unionview.com. He says it's important to research how much financial assistance you'll be eligible for while you're at university. Most people will be able to get a loan which just about covers accommodation costs, but you might be able to get a grant or bursary, too.

Budgeting basics

When budgeting, he advises: "Begin with the essentials such as accommodation and food, then move down the list, from socialising to new clothes, until everything's covered. Then remember to add some more, because you'll inevitably have forgotten something, or want to treat yourself once in a while."

"Really use your student status to save yourself money – the student union card can get discounts in some unlikely places. Remember, a lot of culture around Britain is actually free (especially in London), so you can do a lot without opening your wallet at all."

Some students get part-time jobs during term-time as well as the holidays. "Perhaps the best jobs to get are those on campus or within the university itself, such as in the library, in the students' union, or as a student ambassador," says Ed. "You generally get well paid, have flexible hours, and your employers understand your situation."

Work it out

Khalid Afzar, 20, is studying film and media production with technology at the University of Central Lancashire. He has three part-time jobs: as a student ambassador, in Pizza Hut and at a summer school teaching new students about time management.

"You need to be aware of the necessities you have at home that you won't have at uni, like cleaning products and food. Shelling out for these yourself takes a big cut out of your budget," he says. "Work out how much money you have coming in from loans, grants, bursaries and jobs and how long it will have to last you. So, if you get paid monthly don't spend it all the week you get paid – make it last all month."

The essentials

Khalid says when you go food shopping it pays to shop around. Budget supermarkets, such as Aldi, are not necessarily cheaper than the main supermarkets as they all offer different deals. "Make sure you shop around for the cheapest food, but don't overdo it," he warns, "You don't want to be throwing food away because it's gone off."

Ed Bowsher, head of consumer finance at financial website lovemoney.com, suggests ordering your groceries online. This will make it easier to stick to your budget and shop for what you need, rather than making impulse purchases. "Conduct your shop via mysupermarket.co.uk, so you can compare prices across different supermarkets, and then look for discount vouchers on hotukdeals.com to offset the cost of the delivery," he says.

If you live in halls of residence then bills such as electricity and gas will be included in your rent, but if you live in private accommodation you'll have to split these costs with your flatmates. Use comparison websites such as uswitch.com and moneysupermarket.com, to find the cheapest energy tariffs and make sure everyone pays their share.

Cheap thrills

There are even cheeky ways to save on entertainment. Ed Bowsher suggests registering with a TV production company to get tickets to be in the live audience of your favourite show. Sites like seefilmfirst.com and momentumscreenings.co.uk will also send you complimentary tickets to preview screenings of new movies. "If it's nights in you're after, DVD rental websites such as lovefilm.com and CDwow.comoffer a free trial to new customers – you could hop around from site to site for months of free DVDs," he says.

By Emma Lunn

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